Technetium-99m is an important radionuclide used extensively in hospitals and other establishments. When formulated into various chemical compounds it is commonly used as a diagnostic radiopharmaceutical.
In practice, technetium-99m is obtained as a decay product of its parent radionuclide molybdenum-99. This radionuclide has a half life of 66 hours and decays continuously to yield technetium-99m. Several practical devices known as generators are commercially available which enable the user to separate the daughter radionuclide, technetium-99m (usually in the form of sodium pertechnetate) from the parent radionuclide.
However, technetium-99m has a half life of only 6 hours and due to this relatively rapid decay pertechnetate solutions should be used as soon as possible after preparation. Consequently, there is a market for transportable technetium generators for use at medical clinics. The generators should be capable of operation at these clinics in a manner which is easy and reliable for producing a very pure product. Furthermore, it would be advantageous for many purposes if the product were a solution having a relatively high concentration of technetium-99m.
In addition to transportable chromatographic-type generators, it is also possible to produce pertechnetate solutions in bulk. Providing distribution to user sites can be rapid and there is a relatively high concentration in the solution, a centralised bulk production facility may be a useful approach. However, for many locations there is a need for portable chromatographic generators.